Page 104 of Unmasking Mr. Crown

"You wanna know something?" he asked after a long pause. “She wants the very same thing for you."

Noah stayed until she finished dinner, going so far as to tidy her kitchen and start a load of towels down in the basement laundry room. He poked his head back in her bedroom one last time. "Before I forget, I brought a few odds and ends from the office—vendor samples mostly. Thought you might want to play catch-up in case you were planning to be out the rest of the week. I left everything in the kitchen … except for this.”

From behind his back, he pulled a piece of printer paper into view. He smiled as he gave it a little shake.

“What’s that?”

“A copy of your report. From the opera gala. I’ve gotta say, I think it’s the best thing you’ve ever written.”

He weaved his way through the minefield of crap on her floor and placed the paper onto her lap with a great flourish. Natalie read the page in silence while Noah stood quietly beside the bed, rocking back and forth on his heels. Every line warmed her insides like a bowl of homemade chicken soup.

“Note your attention to detail and clever turn of phrase. God, you’re so talented.” He bit back a grin. “You took a ton of pics too—the printed menus, the centerpieces, those gorgeous desserts.”

She looked up at him, her eyes glassy with emotion. “You stayed at the gala … and did all this for me?”

“I did this for us. You know, in case the showcase didn’t go over as planned. I emailed everything to Otto’s assistant. She emailed back with her standard Received! message. No word from Otto, but he’s probably waiting until you get back, so you can talk in person.”

“I don’t know how to thank you.” Natalie shook her head in amazement as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks.

“You can thank me by getting back to work. Natalie & Co had a small setback, but tomorrow we put our heads together, we right this ship, and we get our butts back on course.”

Natalie walked him to the door. Noah pulled her close and they held each other for a full minute. Time and again, he helped her find her smile. What a gift, his fiercely loyal friendship.

"You know, if I were a straight man, I'd fight tooth and nail to make you mine," he whispered.

"If you were a straight man, you wouldn't have to," she whispered back. "I'd be yours."

Noah opened the door and turned back to her. “If Dash and Kate were serious, he wouldn’t have come to your room. He would’ve continued the charade.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.” Noah reached out and touched her cheek. “You don’t have to choose, Nat. You can have it all—your dream business and your dream guy. And I say this with all the love in my heart: maybe just get out of your own way.”

The door closed behind him. Natalie stood there for a moment, digesting his parting words.

Noah’s right. Time to get out of my own way.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

DASH

Miranda’s right. The universe isn't screwing around.

As Dash turned into his driveway, he glanced between a car parked on the street and a person sitting on his porch steps. Kate in silhouette, backlit by porch lights.

He parked, his heart kicking into overdrive. He sucked in a breath and eyed the rearview mirror, taking a moment to silently reassure himself. He exited the car and made his way toward her, hoping for the best but mentally preparing for the worst. Kate stood and they shared a quick, noticeably tepid embrace.

“Your crew made great time. I thought you wouldn’t touch down until midnight.”

“I was able to get on an earlier flight.”

"Ah, good. Are you okay?" he asked.

Based on her closed body language, she was anything but.

"Can we go inside and talk? I know it's late, but this can't wait," she said.

Dash's heart caved at the sound of her tone, both sad and resolute.